The EcoMobility World Festival will give Johannesburg the opportunity to show the world that an “economic, eco-mobile” future is possible.
cyclejoziweek1 250Diepsloot residents at the launch of Cycle Jozi Week, Monday 16 March. (Photo: www.freedomride.co.za)The EcoMobility World Festival, a month-long car-free city district event taking place in Sandton, Johannesburg in October, was officially launched in Parktown on Tuesday, 17 March.
The launch coincided with Cycle Jozi Week, a programme of events taking place across Joburg with the aim of promoting a “cycling-friendly” city.
The second-ever EcoMobility World Festival will take place from 1-31 October, coinciding with South Africa’s national Transport Month, and will see sections of the Sandton CBD being turned into a car-free “eco-mobile” neighbourhood that enables non-motorised transport while featuring activities such as daily walks, aerobics and leisure cycling events.
The festival will mobilise local and international support for eco-mobile alternatives to fossil-fuel transport, while showcasing Joburg’s Rea Vaya bus rapid transit (BRT) system, along with the pedestrian- and cycling-friendly infrastructure the city is building in the Sandton CBD and other parts of the city.
TRANSFORMING INHERITED TRANSPORT PATTERNS
The Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA) is closely involved in both these initiatives: Rea Vaya and the ongoing expansion of the BRT network is one of its flagship projects, and is closely linked to the JDA’s development of dedicated walking and cycling pathways in strategic areas across Joburg.
These include 5-kilometre dual-use pathways in Orlando, Soweto and between Alexandra and Sandton – the former was completed last year, the latter is under construction – as well as a route for students between the University of Johannesburg’s campuses in Auckland Park and Doornfontein, and between Wits University and Park Station.
Both initiatives form part of the City of Joburg’s strategy to build a liveable, sustainable city for residents and visitors by creating a network of people- and environment-friendly public transport routes criss-crossing the urban landscape.
Speaking at Tuesday’s launch event, City of Joburg Executive Mayor Parks Tau said the City “wants to show that an economic, eco-mobile future is possible and that public transport, walking and cycling can be accessible, safe and attractive.”
Mayor Tau said the City had dedicated a fleet of 150 new Metro buses to be part of the festival.
“We will retrofit our buses with environment-friendly engines and also ensure that we mobilise the public to retrofit their vehicles. We will have routes dedicated to public transport, cycling and walking, and organise a range of other activities to ensure that this EcoMobility World Festival becomes a success.”
CHANCE FOR JOBURG TO ‘SHOW THE WORLD WHAT’S POSSIBLE’
The first EcoMobility World Festival took place in Suwon, South Korea over the month of September 2013, attracting over one-million national and international visitors.
The Festivals were conceived by Konrad Otto-Zimmermann, former secretary-general of ICLEI, a global association of local governments and organisations committed to sustainability, and current creative director at The Urban Idea.
“The EcoMobility World Festival is a once-in-a-life time opportunity for the local community to try out a scenario of future sustainable living,” Otto-Zimmermann said at Tuesday’s launch. “It means experiencing and showcasing an eco-mobile lifestyle in a real city, by real people, in real time.”
ICLEI secretary-general Gino van Begin said the event gave Joburg an opportunity “to demonstrate to the entire world that citizens and city leaders can make a difference in addressing climate change, urban emissions and urban livability through transport.
“The way we move defines the future of our cities,” Van Begin said. “EcoMobility supports a future transport system that is attractive, affordable, healthy and environmentally friendly. Thus, benefitting the citizens in a city the most.”
Over the next few months, the City will engage with residents, property owners, businesses and transport stakeholders to finalise which roads will be closed and what alternative travel arrangements will be made for the festival.
“The City is committed to involving all relevant stakeholders to ensure participative decision-making in the event, and to communicate, celebrate and visualize a low-carbon future through the lens of EcoMobility,” Mayor Tau said.
“We want it to be a festival of the people. We want people to be in Sandton to enjoy and walk the streets to create excitement.”